State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman held a tour last week (December 27, 2023) in the Gilboa Regional Council. The leaders of the council and residents of the communities and kibbutzim expressed concern given the proximity to the Palestinian city of Jenin and the fact that the existing fence between them and Jenin does not sufficiently address the threat of terrorist penetration. The comptroller came with Defense Division Director Eitan Dahan and Local Government Division Director Miri Razin. The tour was led by the regional council's mayor, Oved Nur. At the tour the comptroller and his staff were presented with the challenges of securing the residents of the Gilboa Regional Council given the danger of terrorist penetration from the Jenin district and northern Samaria.
The initiative for the tour came after a similar tour that the state comptroller and senior officials from his office held in the "Jerusalem envelope" and "Gush Dan envelope," which revealed the security challenges that need to be addressed in the Jerusalem region due to the Shuafat and Kafr 'Aqab refugee camps, in the Sharon region and in Samaria.
State comptroller Matanyahu Englman said at the end of the tour: "The Simchat Torah massacre on October 7th demands that we significantly change how we think and give maximum attention to the security challenges of seam line communities. The tours at the Gilboa, Jerusalem, the Sharon and Samaria raise the need for arrangements to protect Israel's residents from terrorists who could penetrate from Palestinian Authority areas. The government of Israel and the security forces must provide "Israel envelope" residents from the north, south, center and Jerusalem the full security layer needed in all sectors given the terrorist threats. Security measures in the seam line area must be adapted to the risk of terrorists penetrating from the West Bank.